


Accessories of Love

by FandomLastsForever



Category: RWBY
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-18 14:42:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9389618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FandomLastsForever/pseuds/FandomLastsForever
Summary: Coco and Velvet checking their injuries and confronting their feelings after the battle of Beacon.





	

**Author's Note:**

> request from sketchhungry, originally posted to my tumblr Dec 1st, 2016

The battle had been going on for hours. There was just no end at all to the hordes. If it wasn’t a Beowolf, it was an Ursa. If it wasn’t an Ursa, a Paladin. They kept coming. Again. And again. And again.

Until they came no more.

Velvet leaned against Fox while Yatsuhashi carried Coco, and the team settled against the wall near the courtyard. Everyone was tired. And after a fight like that, who wouldn’t be?

"Coco,“ Velvet started. "Let me look at your ankle.”

"It’s nothing,“ Coco muttered. "Just a sprain and a broken heel.”

"Come on Fox,“ Yatsuhashi said. "There should be a medic someplace nearby. Let’s go find them.” He looked at Velvet and Coco, the worry on his face apparent. “Are you two going to be okay while we’re gone?”

"We’ll be fine,“ their Faunus friend assured. "Just be careful, okay?”

"Will do.“

Velvet watched their team mates hurry to find help, waiting until they were out of sight before turning her full attention to Coco.

"Now stay still,” Velvet ordered gently. “I have to check to make sure you don’t need any extensive medical attention.”

"I’m fine!“ Coco insisted.

"Then you won’t mind me checking.”

With a disgruntled sigh, Coco consented, pulling off her favorite barrette while Velvet started checking for any bumps on her skull. Coco tried to hide her blush as gentle fingers grazed their way through her caramel ombre locks. It wasn’t unusual. Velvet always started with head injuries and worked her way down. This should be nothing new.

_Then why am I blushing?_ Coco asked herself.

"No head injuries,“ Velvet declared. "Mind lifting your shirt a bit?”

Coco tuned out a bit, letting her dark eyes focus on the lovely rabbit before her. Those lighter brown eyes were always so full of joy. So warm. So inviting. And those lovely brunette locks. Despite being a little singed and dirty, was still beautiful in the heartbroken moonlight illuminating their little corner. And that voice. That accent. Coco couldn’t let it go from her mind.

"No sign of broken ribs,“ Velvet assessed. "You’ll have some pretty nasty bruises though.”

"When you’re done checking me, I’m looking you over.“ Coco said. She knew she probably wouldn’t get the chance though, if Fox and Yatsuhashi were fast.

"Okay,” Velvet agreed. “Let’s examine that ankle then.”

Slowly Velvet removed the black leather boot off her companion’s right foot, setting it beside her while she sat on her knees and gingerly lifted the foot onto her lap.

Coco watched in silence. Her mind constantly flashing between the present and when they were first years. Velvet was a very different person then. She was still shy now, but back then it was like she was apprehensive of anyone who tried to get within ten feet of her.

Velvet’s hands were soft to the touch. Smooth like silk. If she wasn’t in her battle grab, no one would ever think that Velvet was a huntress in training. She was so calm. So gentle.

_Why?_

"Hey Velvet?“ Coco mumbled.

"Yes Coco?”

"Why…did you decide to become a huntress?“

That was the million dollar question. WHY? In the last two years they’ve known each other, Coco couldn’t remember it ever coming up in conversation. They knew more about each other than most people. They knew each other’s favorite color, favorite food, how they liked their coffee, and even their measurements. But at no point had Coco learned why her best friend had entered this line of work.

You would think that at some point they’d have told each other, right? So why had they never talked about it? Was Velvet ashamed of it?

"Oh,” Velvet stammered. “Well…you’d probably think it’s stupid…my reason…”

"Come on,“ Coco sighed. "Nothing you say will make me think it’s stupid, Vel. Tell me.”

There was a long pause between them, the silence only broken by the occasional gunshot or explosion coming from far in downtown Vale. It was a while before Velvet spoke again.

"I…I became a huntress,“ she divulged, "to find love…”

_Love? She joined the ranks of warriors for…love?_

"Care to elaborate?“ Coco asked. "I’ve got time to listen.”

Velvet let out the breath she was holding, slowly slipped off her coat and folded it into a pillow, placing her teammate’s injured leg on top to keep her comfortable. Then she slid up so she was sitting against the wall next to her comrade.

"It was about…five years? Maybe six years ago,“ Velvet began. "I grew up in a little coastal town in the south, just outside the kingdom boarders. There was a story that my grandmother used to tell all the local children about a huntress. In the story, the huntress was a fierce warrior, bravest of the brave and kindest of all. One day when hunting a horde of Grimm, the huntress came across an injured prince, and for several weeks she tended to him, training him in their ways, and eventually fell in love.”

Coco didn’t say anything as Velvet talked. She watched as a blush had slowly crawled across her face. Her rabbit ears drooped lazily, almost as if she was drifting off to sleep.

"I wanted to be just like the huntress in the story,“ Velvet explained. "She was loved by many, and loved all those who came across her path…Growing up as a Faunus, you don’t really get to experience the kind of loving admiration most other humans get unless you become a hunter. So one day, all those years ago, I walked up to my grandmother and told her "I’m going to be just like the huntress in the story someday.” And that’s why I enrolled in the academies.“ She let out an embarrassed chuckle. "Pretty selfish, now that I think about it. Selfish and naive.”

"It’s not selfish,“ Coco protested softly. "It’s more than most people, at least. You want to be loved for who you are and what you do. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

"You really think so?“

"I sure do, Bun-Bun.”

The silence engulfed them again. Velvet looked over at her, their chocolate eyes meeting briefly.

"What about you?“ Velvet inquired. "Why did you choose to be a huntress?”

"Well-“

"OVER HERE!”

Coco was cut off by the sound of Fox and Yatsuhashi, the two of them hurrying over to them with a medical team in tow. She let out a disgruntled sigh. She didn’t know why, but she was angry. She was _really_ angry. _Why did they have to show up now?_

"Let’s finish this talk later,“ said Velvet sleepily. It was clear she was running on empty. They all were really.

"Okay Velvet,” Coco sighed. “You get some sleep. We’ll talk later.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It had been about three days since Beacon had fallen. Team CFVY were staying in a hotel just outside of the city. It was strange. They’d stayed in places outside of school for work before. There was just something so finite about this. It really felt like an ending.

Because it _was_ an ending.

And Coco hated that.

She threw herself face down onto one of the beds, letting out a long groan as she waited for her team to come back. Fox had said something about procuring funds for their trip to Shade, since after much deliberation the team decided that transferring to another school would be better than nothing. Yatsuhashi was out helping the last of the evacuees get settled. And Coco had no idea where Velvet had run off to, though knowing her, it was most likely someplace important. Velvet never went anywhere without a purpose. Coco liked that about her.

Coco liked a lot of things about her.

She wished she didn’t have to wait back at the hotel without her.

"This is stupid!“ she groaned. "Why did I have to get a stupid cast on my foot!”

"A hairline fracture can cause bigger problems down the line if not properly taken care of.“

Coco rolled onto her back to see where the voice had come from. There stood Velvet, carrying a bag of groceries, her trusty camera dangling from her neck. By the looks of it, it’d been put to use.

"You’ve been gone a while,” Coco commented coolly. “Where’d the rabbit run to?”

"Oh, you know,“ Velvet shrugged. "Stopped by the weapon’s dealer. Told him I was in the market for certain items and was comparing prices. He was nice enough to let me take some photos.”

"Oooooh~ Anything good?“

"Several swords,” Velvet listed, “some bows and arrows, some throwing knives, an ax, several staffs and spears. Managed to snap several of this really impressive grenade launcher too.”

"Impressive!“ Coco exclaimed.

"I also managed to photograph that bartender,” Velvet continued. “You know, the one with the giant bazooka?” Velvet gave a sheepish smile. “Might have told him I was a photographer for "Bartending Monthly” and needed a cover shot.“

"You didn’t!” Coco was impressed. “You’re super sneaky and I love it~!”

"Why thank you~! You hungry?“

"Sure am, fluffle-butt.”

"Coco!“

The two girls broke out into a fit of giggles while Velvet went to the table and unpacked their food. There were instant noodles, some trail mixes, chocolate biscuits, and some salads among many other "delicacies” she had picked up from the corner store. There were also several boxes of juice pouches as well as lots of water.

"Packing for a hike?“ Coco teased.

"This was all that was left at the corner mart,” Velvet explained. “Most stores are closed right now because of the evacuation.”

"Ah, that makes sense,“ Coco conceded. With a hand from Velvet, Coco grabbed her crutch and made her way to the table to join Velvet for lunch. She nibbled on some of the biscuits.

"So Coco,” Velvet said. “Remember when you asked me why I wanted to be a huntress?”

How could she not? It was only three days ago.

"Yeah, I remember. Why?“

"Well…you never told me why you became a huntress…”

Coco froze in place, her eyes slowly turned towards Velvet, who was looking at her plate awkwardly.

Coco had always wanted to tell her. She wanted to tell her whole team her reason for going to Beacon. But there was always that nagging fear in the back of her mind. That feeling that if she dared to say what it was, her friends would leave her. She couldn’t have that happen. Not again.

"You…Might not like it,“ Coco muttered. "You might hate me for it…”

"Coco, nothing you say can make me hate you.“

She’s right, Coco told herself. Velvet was so kind. Too kind for her own good at times. And so honest. She was everything Coco wanted to be.

"Back home,” Coco admitted, “I wasn’t exactly "normal”…I think I was about…thirteen maybe? I don’t really remember. But there was a girl I liked…I LIKE liked her, you know?“

"Oh,” Velvet gasped.

"Yeah,“ Coco mumbled. "Her name was Toffee, and she was my girlfriend. She and I wanted to grow up and take on the world. We were going to go to Haven together. We wanted to become huntresses for the financial perks…Take on high paying jobs, save up, move to the capital city of Mistral, and become leading names in fashion. But as we got older…she started having second thoughts…When I turned sixteen, we broke up and she told her parents she had been thinking about going to combat school and changed her mind…Her parents told mine, and my folks didn’t take it too well…”

"The huntress thing?“ Velvet asked. "Or the liking girls thing?”

"Both,“ Coco replied. "In the end I ran away from home, vowing not to come back until I made it big. I’d become a famous huntress, retire from fighting, and then take the fashion world by storm.”

"So…“ Velvet said slowly, "the reason you chose Beacon over Haven…was to avoid that part of your past…”

"Yeah,“ Coco whispered. "I’m running away. Simple as that…Pretty pathetic, huh?”

Coco didn’t realize Velvet had gotten up from the table until a pair of arms wrapped themselves tightly around her shoulders.

"You’re not pathetic Coco,“ Velvet assured her. "You’re still the strong, determined friend I’ve come to know and respect. It’s okay.”

"I thought,“ Coco whispered, "I thought you’d hate me…”

"What’s there to hate? You’re Coco Adel. I could never hate you.“

The two didn’t say anything more. They stayed there for a while, Coco leaning back into Velvet’s embrace, Velvet’s nose lightly nuzzling into the crook of Coco’s neck. They stayed that way for what felt like hours. And Coco didn’t want it to stop.

_Damn,_ Coco thought to herself. _I’ve fallen too deep this time._

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Velvet sat on the roof of the inn they had booked into, staring off into the sunset as she tended to some new cuts on her legs. Team CFVY was travelling west toward Vacuo at a relatively steady pace. If they kept this up, they’d reach Shade Academy in about another three months. Just in time for the new school year.

But just because they were going at a good stride doesn’t mean it was smooth sailing in the least. There were hordes of Grimm almost every ten miles when they initially left the main city. It took everything they had just to get out with as little injury as possible. They weren’t invincible after all. And Velvet ended up getting scratched pretty badly by a Beowolf when she had shoved Coco out of the way. With both of their Aura levels in the red zone, they’d be staying in this little village for about a week at the least. Yatsuhashi and Fox were collecting lists of current jobs available. A hunter needs to be able to make a living after all. Coco had vanished not long after they had checked into the inn. Velvet wondered where she could have gone.

_Coco’s been avoiding me since Vale_ , she thought to herself. _Did I do something to make her angry at me?_

Velvet was so lost in her thoughts she didn’t even hear the click clack of heels coming up behind her.

"Hey,” called a voice.

Velvet looked behind her, a smile growing on her face. There was Coco, carrying a first aid kit as well as a bottle of what appeared to be Velvet’s favorite energy drink.

"Hey Coco,“ Velvet welcomed her. "That’s not "People Like Grapes” is it?“

"Sure is,” Coco bragged. “Happened to find it in the mini fridge downstairs.” She handed her friend the bottle. “I came to check on you. How’s your leg?”

"Oh, it’s okay,“ Velvet lied. "Just sore. I should be able to heal.”

"Let me see.“

Coco knelt down beside her, setting the kit on the ground beside her and reaching in for scissors.

"I’ll have to cut the fabric away,” Coco said. “We still have your spare suit, but we’ll need to see about an upgrade. Your calves are too exposed, even with the strong leather boots.”

"Can you design the armor for me?“ Velvet asked.

"Sure thing, Bun-Bun.”

Velvet watched as Coco carefully pulled and cut away the blood soaked bits of clothing, wincing a little from the pain of the wound. It hurt like hell, but Velvet didn’t want to admit it. She didn’t want Coco to worry.

"Too bad the nearest doctor isn’t for another two days travel,“ Coco mused, trying to deflect Velvet’s attention from the pain. "We’ll need to keep a good eye on this so it doesn’t get infected.”

"Y-yeah.“ Velvet stammered.

"Maybe in the next town we can hit up the weapons shops. Get some more pictures stocked up. And we can explore the craft stores. We can find some stronger material for your outfit.”

"Sure…Hey Coco?“

"Wassup, Velvet?”

"Did I do something wrong?“

Coco paused for a moment, looking at Velvet’s eyes for a moment before returning to cleaning the wound. "You haven’t done anything wrong Velvet. Why would you think you’ve done something wrong?”

"Well,“ Velvet stammered. "It’s just…you’ve been really distant since we left Vale…since your cast came off…Anytime I try to talk to you, you kind of…shut me off…was there something I did to make you upset with me?”

"Hell no!“ Coco exclaimed. "Velvet, you’re wonderful. You haven’t done a single thing wrong.”

"Then why are you avoiding me?“

There was a strong silence between them.

"Do you not want to talk to me anymore?”

Silence still.

"Coco…do you not like me anymore?“

"That’s not it!”

Velvet flinched. Coco had never raised her voice like that before. What had happened in the time since The Fall? Why is Coco acting so strange?

"That’s not it, Velvet,“ Coco repeated softly. "It’s…complicated…I’m still sorting through it…so…please…don’t think it’s anything you did…It’s just…me.”

"Coco…“

"Stay still. This is gonna hurt.”

They stayed quiet for the rest of it. Velvet held her breath as Coco cleaned and dressed the wound, watching the delicate fingers work their magic on her leg just as they do on the fabrics that come their way. The touch of her hands gentle on her calve.

Velvet loved those fingers.

Velvet loved those hands.

Velvet loved-

"Done,“ Coco sighed. "This should do until we get to the next town. We’ll all take turns checking and cleaning it until then. Once we get to the next town we can see about finding the doctor.”

"Thank you Coco,“ Velvet sighed. "I really appreciate it.”

"No problem, Velvet,“ Coco replied with a smile. "Come on. Let’s get you back to the room to rest.”

"Sure. Um…can I get a hand?“

"Sure thing Fluffle-butt.”

Coco gently wrapped her arm around Velvet’s waist and lifted her up. Velvet slung her arm around Coco’s shoulder to keep herself from falling over. Together the two of them limped downstairs back to their room, faces only inches apart.

All the while, Velvet couldn’t stop the blush from crawling across her cheeks. She wanted to lean in closer, to close the distance, pull her close, hold her, and maybe…

_Oh no,_ she thought to herself. _I knew it. I’ve fallen in love with her._

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

"Velvet, remind me,“ Yatsuhashi said. "Why did you need my help again?”

"I need your help,“ Velvet said. "Because Coco can’t see what I’m getting her until her birthday! It’s next week and I want her to get the best present as possible.”

"You seem rather excited for it,“ he pointed out. "Perhaps there is an important reason?”

"What more reason do we need than she’s our friend?“ Velvet inquired.

"Because as of late,” Yatsuhashi pointed out, “you’ve been behaving as though you’ve fallen head over heels.”

Velvet froze in place, a deep blush covering her neck and cheeks.

"Yatsu!“ Velvet turned to look at him, eyes wide in shock. "What are you talking about? It’s nothing like that at all!”

"Are you sure?“

"Of course I’m sure! Why wouldn’t I be?”

"Velvet,“ he said calmly. "I have been your partner for almost three years now. Just as you can tell when there is something on my mind, or if I am acting differently, I can do the same towards you. Both you and Coco have been behaving very differently since Beacon had fallen. And as your teammate, and friend, I am concerned for your well being.”

_Oh Yatsuhashi,_ Velvet sighed to herself. He was always like this. The giant man could always tell when there was something off. It was one of his many gifts. No matter how hard she tried, she could never fool him. He was one of the best friends she ever could have hoped for.

"Can we…talk about this over cake?“ Velvet asked sheepishly.

Yatsuhashi gave her a reassuring smile. "Of course Velvet. Come on. I saw a bakery just a block away.”

The two made their way to the bakery in calm silence. Yatsuhashi held the door open for his Faunus friend, following her as they entered and took their seats at one of the tables by the window. The waitress came over and took their order. Two coffees with cream and three sugars, a red velvet cupcake, and a plate of chocolate chip cookies.

"So,“ he sighed as the waitress left, "what is it that has you troubled, Velvet?”

"W-well,“ Velvet muttered. "Promise not to find it weird?”

"Of course,“ he promised.

"I…I think I’ve…I think I’ve fallen in love with Coco…”

For a moment, neither said a word. Velvet looked at her lap, her face red like the berries on the shortcakes in the display. Yatsuhashi kept a steady gaze on her, lightly tilting his head to the side in thought.

"You’ve fallen in love with Coco,“ he affirmed.

"Yes,” she whispered.

"Is there a problem with that?“

Velvet looked up at him, confused. "You’re not freaked out or anything?”

"No, I am not,“ he said. "In fact, I’m rather surprised it took this long for you to realize your feelings.”

"What?“

"I thought it would have been obvious,” he explained. “You both spend more time together than with the rest of the team as a whole. You always smile when her name is mentioned. And you always seem most at home looking into a cup of hot chocolate.”

Velvet stared at him with wide eyes. Had she really been that obvious? She didn’t even realize how strong her feelings for her team leader were until about two weeks ago. _How long had Yatsuhashi known?_

"How…how long-“ she began to ask.

"I think it was around the start of second semester our first year,” he shrugged. “I didn’t say anything back then. You were very shy our first year together after all.”

"Right,“ Velvet sighed.

"So then,” Yatsuhashi mused, “now that you know how you feel, what do you plan to do?”

"I…I don’t know. I want to tell her. I want to tell Coco how I feel but…what if she doesn’t feel the same? What if it upsets the whole team?“

"Well, whatever you decide Velvet,” he said, “I’ll stand beside you. If you tell her and she returns your feelings, I’ll be there to support you both. If you tell her, and she doesn’t feel the same, I’ll still be there beside you.”

"Really?“ she asked.

"Yes,” he assured. “We are more than teammates, Velvet. More than friends. We’re family. And family sticks together through the ups and downs of life.”

"Oh Yatsu,“ she giggled. "What did I do to end up with such a great partner.”

The waitress brought them their order and the two enjoyed their snacks while laughing at little jokes and planned out what they’d get Coco for her birthday. They had settled on getting her a new pair of sunglasses. It had been a while since Coco had purchased a pair to replace her favorite set. And maybe a case for them as well, so she can place them someplace safe during a fight and not worry about breaking them.

_Things are going to be okay,_ Velvet thought to herself.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

"And that’s why I have been acting weird these last few weeks. HAPPY?!“

Fox and Coco had been looking around town for the blacksmith so they could order the new armor for Velvet. Fox had taken the opportunity to interrogate his partner on why she had been acting so strange since Vale. Lucky for him, Fox was as sly as his namesake, so getting Coco to spill the beans took little to no effort at all on his part.

What he hadn’t expected was Coco to go on a rant about how she was slowly falling for their favorite Faunus fun-bun to the point where she was tempted to just kiss her and not look back. Silently he wondered if Yatsuhashi had any insight on this. Their sword wielding monk often had a way of reading people’s feelings before that person themselves were aware of them.

"So then,” Fox inquired, “what is it you plan on doing Coco? Are you going to tell her?”

"Hell no!“ she cried. "What if she doesn’t feel the same? Do you realize how awkward it’ll make things between the team?”

"About as awkward as you yelling at me in the middle of the marketplace?“

Coco stopped in her tracks, face pale from embarrassment. There were quite a few people staring at her and her companion. She grabbed him by the arm and led him to a secluded alleyway so they could talk privately.

"Sorry Fox,” she groaned. “I overreacted.”

"No need to apologize Coco,“ he said. "Now, wanna know what I think?”

"Please.“

"Tell her,” he said flatly. “You never know what is going to happen if you don’t speak up.”

"But what if she doesn’t feel the same?!“

"But what if she does?”

Coco stopped for a moment. She had run it through her mind hundreds of times. All the possible confessions. All the declarations. All of them ended the same in her mind.

Velvet rejecting her.

"Coco,“ Fox sighed. "For once, stop thinking. You always think too hard on things like this. Just go with the flow. Like when you’re shopping.”

"Like when I go shopping?“ she asked.

"Yeah. Enter the store, say what item you’re looking for, and hope the store carries it. If they do, congrats! You win! If they don’t, move on to the next store when you’re ready.”

"Well…“

"They say "wear your heart on your sleeves”, Coco,“ he stressed. "Love is an accessory to compliment your life’s wardrobe. So are you going to try on that accessory or not?”

Coco stared at him for a while, thinking over what he said. Slowly a smile broke out on her face and she burst into laughter.

"Fox,“ she gasped, "that was the cheesiest thing you have ever said!”

"So are you going to try it?“ he said with a smile.

"Yeah,” she agreed. “I’m going to try on love.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Coco waited outside under the apple tree near their hotel, twirling her hair around her finger as she waited for Velvet. Her friend said she wanted to tell her something important alone, and to meet her there while the boys were away. It wasn’t the weirdest thing to happen on her birthday, but Coco didn’t mind. She wanted this one on one time with Velvet. She needed to talk to her.

_She needed to tell her._

"Coco!“

Coco looked up when Velvet came running over to her, a smile crawling from ear to ear at the excitement in her voice.

"Hey Velvet,” she replied. “You wanted to talk to me?”

"Yes,“ Velvet said. "But first, you need to open this.”

Velvet handed Coco a small box wrapped in gold wrapping paper. There was a single black ribbon tying it off in the corner.

"Okay,“ Coco said awkwardly. She slowly too off the wrappings to find a case for glasses. It was chocolate brown, with a golden clasp and a chain so she could hook it to her belt. there were small designs covering it, which upon closer inspection were small rabbits in a circle. Opening the case, Coco found a pair of sunglasses.

"Happy birthday Coco,” Velvet sang. “Do you like them?”

Coco looked at the glasses for a moment before putting them back in the case and attaching it to her belt. She looked at Velvet, her darker eyes taking in the warmth of her friends lighter shade. Coco pulled Velvet close, burying her face in the long hair, taking in the smell, the feeling, the radiance.

"I love them Velvet,“ she whispered. "Thank you.”

Velvet hugged her back, beaming with pride. “I’m glad you love them.”

"Let me guess,“ Coco teased. "Yatsuhashi helped you pick them?”

"The shades,“ Velvet conceded. "Not the case. I chose that.”

"It’s perfect,“ Coco sighed.

For a while they said nothing. They stood there holding each other as the sun slowly set beyond the horizon. When they finally pulled back, both were blushing. They tried to speak at the same time, only to stop and offer to let the other go first.

"You first,” Velvet insisted. “You’re the birthday girl after all.”

"Right,“ Coco sighed. Taking a deep breath to compose herself, she kept a laser focus on Velvet.

Everything she never said. Everything she wanted to say. It was now or never.

"Velvet,” Coco began. “For a while now…I’ve been thinking and…well…I have to be honest with you…I can’t hide it anymore…”

"Coco-?“

Coco held up her hand, only to realize it was shaking. She lowered her hand and decided not to hold back.

"Velvet,” she blurted. “I’m in love with you!”

Both of them stared at each other, eyes wide in shock at what had been said. Coco felt a blush creep over her, silently wishing she had thought this through better.

"Coco,“ Velvet breathed. "You…You’re in love with me?”

"Y-yes,“ she replied, looking away.

Velvet took a step forward. Coco shut her eyes, expecting the worst. What she didn’t expect was a pair of arms wrapping around her. She didn’t expect a gentle hand to tilt her chin up so she wasn’t looking away.

She didn’t expect a pair of silky lips to meet with hers.

Coco’s eyes flew open wide and at first she just stood there, stiff in surprise. But slowly she started to melt into the kiss. Her arms lightly wrapped themselves around Velvet’s shoulders and the two stood there in silence. The world felt as if it had frozen in time.

After about a minute or two, Velvet pulled back to breathe.

"I love you too, Coco,” she whispered.

Coco stared at her, eyes welling with tears.

"You do?“ she asked.

"Of course I do,” Velvet giggled. “I have for a while. I just…didn’t know how to say it…”

"I think we both said it clearly enough today,“ Coco laughed.

"I think we did.”

"Can we,“ Coco stammered, "can we try that again? The-the kissing thing?”

Velvet let out another soft giggle. “Sure.”

Coco smiled and leaned in again. This kiss was slightly deeper, but the emotion was just like the first. She felt her mind race for but a moment. Things would be different now.

But that was okay. She didn’t care at that moment. For now, things were wonderful.

_Things were finally perfect._

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Valentine's Day everyone!


End file.
